ZIP 02571 vs ZIP 02538

This side-by-side compares ZIP 02571 (Wareham, MA) and ZIP 02538 (East Wareham, MA) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 02571 has a population of 10,481 at 203 people per square mile, while ZIP 02538 has 3,603 at 306 per square mile. That difference in population size and density alone reshapes how every other metric should be interpreted — a higher-income ZIP with 1,200 residents behaves very differently from one with 45,000.

On income and education, ZIP 02571 reports a median household income of $94,265 against $123,750 in ZIP 02538, with per-capita income of $52,951 vs $44,053. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 29.0% in 02571 and 24.6% in 02538. Poverty rate reads 4.5% vs 3.3%, and unemployment 4.0% vs 0.6% — these four fields alone drive most of the difference in the scorecard grades you will see for each ZIP.

Housing separates these two ZIPs further: median home value sits at $441,900 in 02571 versus $392,000 in 02538, with median rent of $1,537 and $1,407 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 81.0% vs 82.2%. When reading the comparison table below, focus on paired metrics rather than single winners — a ZIP with lower home values and lower income is not strictly "worse" if rent-to-income ratios and commute times land in the same zone. Every value is pulled from the exact same ACS table so the two columns are genuinely comparable.